Are Those Monthly Subscription Boxes Worth It? Our Take on Kona Kase

There are SO many monthly subscription boxes out there. Have a kid? One for you — and them! Love make-up, beer, wine or anything and everything in between? Monthly box it is! Heck, even dogs have them now. But what goes into a really good monthly subscription box — and is it really worth the monthly fee?
I’ve been trying out a few of them, and I think it’s all about what you’re looking to get from them. Fun monthly mail? Motivation? Shiny new things? Totally. We’ve already shared our thoughts on the Bulu Box over on FBG, and in the next couple of weeks I’ll review the FabFitFun monthly box, too, but today I want to share my experience with Kona Kase ($15 a month).
Confession: I got this box in May. (We’ve just had so much good stuff to cram in on the site lately!)

According to its website, Kona Kase is all about helping you to live a healthy and fit lifestyle and sends goodies each month to encourage you to get moving. And from the looks of my sorely neglected box, they live up to that description. Check all of the goodies!

You’re first greeted with a little description of everything in your box.

Then — maybe my favorite part — a really nice inspirational quote. Bulu Box does this, too, but with fun sayings (“Make today ridiculously awesome.”), and I’ve loved them so much that I’ve hung them up in my work area for motivation. (Hashtag Smart Marketing.) Amen, Teddy!

Up first, snacks! Gluten-free and crunchy. I dig it. And I’d never heard of this company before, so it’s always fun to try something new.

Then, oh wait, what’s that? A Luna bar! I’ve had plenty of Luna bars in my day, but never this particular one.

This bar wasn’t on my list, but here it is. And it was fairly processed (okay, a lot processed), but I had a bite of it, and it was also damn delicious. Like the name says, it made me want to do this.

Up next, it was all GU, all the time. There were these (I can’t be the only one who occasionally enjoys the Energy Chews as a gummy dessert, right? RIGHT?)

And more …

And more … (Most excited about this one as I’ve never had it or even heard of it yet!)

And, whoops, almost forgot, one more. (And, again, never seen these electrolyte drink tables from GU, so that was rad.)

Empty box! They sure do stuff a lot into that thing.

Overall, it’s a fun little monthly treat. I think you probably need to be training for an event or doing long enough workouts (hour plus, totally) that necessitate post-workout fuel to make it worth your while (although the GU products alone would cost you $15+ at a store), but the snacks were nice, and it was fun to have access to samples of so much new stuff. I do wish it hadn’t been so much of one brand, but it’s still a totally great way to try new things and see what you like — and what you don’t — with a minimal investment. Also a super fun gift idea.

Do you subscribe to any monthly boxes? What are they? —Jenn